The masculine oppression of woman through music in Čhānd Grahan

Art can be a force that has a “totaliz­ing, dehumanizing” process. For instance, Dilbur conducts his dehumanization through ghažals in episodes 4 and 5 as a means of psychological torture and to create emotional turmoil for Gulbahar. To suggest his wait for Gulbahar, he devises the following rhyme which is a mix between lyrical poetry and a harassing catcall: “You have a long life/My gaze has been searching for you/ It took so long for the merciful to come/on [her] arrival I give myself up”. (Baṛi omar hē tumhāri/ ḍẖonḍẖ hē rahi tẖi nazar humāri/ Baṛi dēr ki meḥrbān ātē ātē, arē si adā pē meiñ qurbān jāoñ)

The soundtrack “Mōjẖē Vida Ker Ayē Mēri Zāt Phir Mōjẖē” (My inner self has come to see me again) is run to Shahrbano’s Zāt to her marriage and then when she is physically hit by Amjad when he taunts her. After this, in episode 7, when Nasir seeks hers out on the same beach side, Shahrbano pleads him to leave saying, “I don’t recognize anyone, probably not even myself” (Meiñ kisi ko nahi pehčānti, shāid apnē āp ko bẖi nahi) which is again a reflection on the song itself.

What Čhānd Grahan does besides showing music as a form of oppression is also to show how music can encourage a meek submission towards masculine authority. Gulbahar who becomes Lal Hussain Shah’s wife reminisces about the times she used to sing to herself about “Is there anyone who will be my companion in these dark times/even I lie to him he should speak the truth to me” (koi tō hō jō meri weḥshatoñ ka sātẖi ho/ Meiñ ōs sē jhōt bẖi bolōn tō mujẖ sē sučẖ bolē). Shahrbano as Lal Hussain Shah’s daughter also submits to the marriage that is held for the preservation of power between her father and father-in-law and the ghažal she listens to time and again speaks of celebrating and reconciling herself to her grief when trapped inside the Babar household.

Women not subscribed to a male entity such as Khannum provide courtesans for the feudal males and is thus also brought within the male fold that dictates the direction of her life. She tells Amir-un-Nisa to sing since that helps one to forget (Gānā gā, gānā sab bẖolā detā hē). In this way, music plays a role in a complete deconstruction of the female mind in order to make her subservient to the male hierarchy.

(VERY) Late Blogpost: Jehania ki chirya

        At every instance where the jagirdaar claim to the land and to prestige is questioned, Jehaniya Shah bellows in anger, “HUM MALIK HAIN IS ZAMEEN KE! HUMARAY HUKAM KE BAGHAIR CHIRYA PARR NAHI MAARTI”. This phrase signifies the rigid mindset of the landowning class, which is incapable of even conceiving that anyone else may have claims to the land that they call their own. They derive their prestige not only from the “jaidad” that they hold so dear to their hearts. Rather it is a social construct, one that guarantees them their “izzat” in society. The chirya is a helpless being, one that can easily be silenced by the jagirdaar, much like the muzaray on their lands who have been exploited by the land owning class for generations.  This perpetuation of the class structure becomes very ironic at the end of the drama when Jehania  Shah’s words lose their meaning with their constant repetition. The last time these words are said, their recipient is Babar sahib who responds by saying that times have changed and that Jehania is not granted the blanket of immunity for his crimes, just by virtue of being on the land he owns. Soon after this Jehania considers making a run to “ilaqa-e-ghair”, however he puts this notion aside, realizing that every area is “ilaqa-e-ghair” for him and his companions. This indicates a real change in the way Jehania views his position in society, such that he is cognizant of the fact that he is not above the law.  When Jehania succumbs to his fate and surrenders to the police, he chooses freedom in a jail cell over the captivity of living on the run. It is particularly poignant that just when we see some growth of character, Jehania is shot on sight, by the same chirya that could not flap its wings on his land, without his blessing.